Brief Bio: In simple terms, Joe Guyon was another Jim Thorpe. The comparison is actually quite simple. Both were Native Americans that attended school at Carlisle. Both were fierce competitors in all facets of the game. The two even played together for four different teams in the early days of the NFL. Guyon was actually Thorpe’s peer in many respects, yet never quite received the same spotlight attention. After leaving Carlisle, Guyon was an All-American at Georgia Tech and helped lead his team to the collegiate national title in 1917. To bring his career full circle, Guyon led the New York Giants to the 1927 NFL crown and finally received much deserved recognition after playing in Thorpe’s shadow for much of his career. Guyon’s career was cut short by a baseball injury before the 1928 NFL season began.

Featured Card: Pro Football Hall of Fame 8″x10″ head shot. It seems fitting that despite a brilliant playing career, Joe Guyon was overlooked by early card companies while Jim Thorpe was immortalized in several vintage sets. A career that ended almost a decade before the first nationally distributed football card set doesn’t help either. Trading cards of Guyon are hard to come by, most examples being junk wax era HOF specific sets, most copies of which sell on eBay for $1 (the lowest BIN price allowed). If you are looking for a little more pizzazz for your HOF collection, index cards featuring Guyon’s autograph tend to fetch upwards of $400, although that obviously sacrifices the trading card feel. As I’ve said before, know what is right for YOUR collection, and then go after that. I can’t tell you want is right for your collection, only you can.

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